


All I Need

by Alice_h



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Alternate Ending, Comfort, F/F, F/M, One Shot, Season/Series 04 Spoilers, Short, catradora, i'm doing the lord's work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-06
Updated: 2019-11-07
Packaged: 2021-01-24 04:44:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,939
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21332482
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alice_h/pseuds/Alice_h
Summary: I had to write something that would make me stop crying over the end of Season 4 (spoilers ahead!)
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra), Entrapta/Hordak (She-Ra)
Comments: 27
Kudos: 204





	1. Chapter 1

“Guess you wanted all my attention for yourself,” Glimmer pointed her staff at the girl cowering on the ground. It felt so good to finally confront Catra, the person responsible for her mother’s death, and she was going to make the most of it, “Your troops are gone. You’re all alone. You’ve lost.”

Catra didn’t react. She didn’t even look up at Glimmer, “What are you waiting for? Do it.”

Glimmer gasped. She expected a fight, she expected venomous words… but there was nothing. Catra looked completely defeated.

“Glimmer! Don’t!” Adora’s voice grew in volume as she sprinted past a trapped Hordak, pushing the Queen back as she got between the two girls. They may have been on opposite sides of war, but she wasn’t going to let them hurt each other.

“Adora, I…” Glimmer couldn’t find the words. She needed to admonish Adora for disobeying her, she needed to apologise, she needed to… she didn’t know what to think any more. It had seemed so clear, that she could save Etheria by reuniting Scorpia with the Black Garnet – it should have been simple, but things were harder now than they had ever been.

Adora tried to catch her breath, “Glimmer… what did you… do?”

“I did what I thought was right!” she felt her tone becoming argumentative, “I guess I was wrong.”

“Hey, it’s okay,” the blonde reassured her with a hand on her shoulder, “It’s not your fault, Light Hope has been manipulating us all.”

“Can you not do this?” Catra distracted their attention, “I don’t want this to be the last thing I see, it’s…ugh…”

Adora looked at her, fear beginning to make its way across her face, “The last thing you see? But…”

“Your friend Sparkles was about to put an end to me,” she let her head flop back, her eyes closing as she awaited her fate, “Can you just get it over with?”

“Catra, no…”

“I thought you were here to do what’s best for Etheria?” Catra’s voice was eerily calm and quiet, “So why don’t you do it? Kill me.”

Adora took a step towards her, “I’m not going to-“

“KILL ME! I DON’T DESERVE TO LIVE!” she yelled, paying no attention to the tears falling from her eyes, “You’ve won, Adora. You can save everyone. It’s everything you wanted.”

“No…” the blonde tried – and failed – to fight off tears of her own. She dropped to her knees inches from Catra, “This isn’t what I want. This isn’t what I want at all. All I want… all I _need_… is you.”

Her words took Catra by surprise. She looked up at the girl, the shock even making her forget she was crying, “Me?”

Adora smiled at her. It was a smile that Catra had seen so many times before when they were together – a smile that radiated warmth, that made her feel safe; a smile that reassured her things were okay. There was no need for Adora to say anything, this said it all.

“But how could you? I’ve done… I’m an awful person,” Catra stumbled over her words, there were so many things she needed Adora to remember about her. She was beyond redemption, and she wouldn’t let Adora get dragged down with her.

“You’re not,” Adora said softly, “You’ve hurt people, and you have to carry that, but it’s not too late. I know you, Catra, I know the _real _you and all these things you’ve done… that’s not who you really are. I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you. I know I’ve been busy being She-Ra, but I’ve always felt like something is missing. It’s you, Catra. I need you. I love you.”

The brunette wiped her face. It was soaking wet with tears, a fact which made her gasp in surprise – she’d never cried like this before. Every time she felt bad, she’d just slash away at something with her claws, but she wouldn’t cry. This was different. There was a feeling she couldn’t identify, and it just fuelled her weeping.

“I… I need you too, Adora. I’m so sorry…”

Adora said nothing but reached her arms out and brought Catra into a tight hug. She held the girl as though trying to merge their bodies into one, to share the pain of the past few months and the hope of the next few. Catra sobbed harder than ever as the blonde girl rested her chin on the top of her head and whispered to her, “It’s okay. I’m here.”

“I’m sorry,” was all she could say in response, because they were the only words that rang around her head. She had done so many unforgiveable things, and even if she apologised for the rest of her life, it wouldn’t be enough.

“It’s okay. Come with me, we can save Etheria together,” Adora released her hold on Catra, who kept her body pressed tightly against the blonde girl, “You can make this right.”

The girl shook her head, “I can’t…”

“You can. You’re Catra, the fearless girl who wouldn’t let anyone outsmart her. You’re Catra, the person who could take everything in her stride and not get fazed when things got difficult. You’re brave and you’re strong, you’re athletic and cunning, you’re stubborn as hell and you have one hell of a sharp tongue. You still jump when I shout about a mouse and you curl up on the end of my bed because you fell off the top bunk once and you’re terrified you’ll do it again. You’re beautiful and you have the most caring side to you that you hide from people. You were always there for me when I need you, Catra, and I need you now.”

The catgirl shook her head dismissively, “Nah. That’s not me, I’m the one who drives people away. There’s nothing you can say, Adora…”

“Then I won’t say any more,” she gently put her hand on Catra’s cheek and leaned forward. Their lips met, Catra’s eyes initially widening in surprise, before she realised what was happening. Her body relaxed and her eyes closed, the sensation of Adora’s lips on her own the only thing that mattered to her. She didn’t want this to end, it would mean returning to the harsh reality, but the blonde pulled away slightly, breaking the kiss and staring deep into Catra’s eyes.

“What the hell?!” Glimmer screeched from behind them, having watched the whole thing, “Adora, she’s evil! And you just _kissed _her?”

Adora turned to look at the Queen, smiling warmly, “I did. Because I love her. Glimmer, I know she’s done awful, maybe unforgivable things, but please trust me. I need her, and she needs me. Please, Glimmer…”

“I suppose I’m not in a position to argue,” she sighed, running a finger through her hair, “Fine…”

“Thank you. Seriously, thank you,” Adora got to her feet, holding her hand out towards Catra, “Let’s put this right, Catra. Together.”

The catgirl grabbed her hand eagerly and let Adora pull her up. She wiped more tears from her face, starting to feel a little embarrassed about crying in front of people, but Adora’s sympathetic smile put her at ease.

“Think you can teleport us to the Crystal Castle?” the blonde called as she ran with Catra over towards Glimmer.

The Queen nodded, “No problem. Let’s go save Etheria.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just when Hordak thinks he is defeated, a familiar face gives him hope

Watching Glimmer, Catra and Adora vanish into the ether, Hordak let his body fall. All the years, all the sacrifices, all the effort he had put into creating an empire to show Horde Prime that he was worth something… and now Prime would find him trapped in a crumbling building alone, his soldiers nowhere to be found, his empire in ruins and his body devoid of strength.

“I am sorry, brother,” he said out loud, palpable resignation in his voice, “I am a failure.”

Hordak closed his eyes, knowing that his fate was sealed. The moment Prime arrived, both he and Etheria would be disposed of without a moment’s thought. He would have nothing to show to prove his value as a member of the Horde’s massive armies, and everything he had done on this planet would be for nothing.

“No you’re not!”

That voice, it was unmistakeable. It couldn’t be – Catra had sent Entrapta to Beast Island, that was akin to a death sentence. It wasn’t possible for her to be here. This was presumably some hallucination caused by one of the myriad faults with his body, there was no way-

“Hiiii!”

Hordak fought off the pain coursing through every inch of his body, and lifted his head up to see the Princess stood in front of him, “Entrapta…? How did you get here?”

“How did _you _get here?” she questioned him back, tilting her head as they stared at each other, “I came back with my friends in a spaceship. A real spaceship! I needed to come here to the Fright Zone to find Emily so that we could work together to take it apart and… oh, the data we’re going to find. Have you seen Emily? I thought she would come and find me as soon as-”

The rapid talking began to irritate Hordak. He was trapped and vulnerable, yet Entrapta was rambling on about spaceships, “Enough! Help me up.”

“Oh! Sure!” the Princess said cheerfully as a thick tendril of hair wrapped itself around the debris on top of Hordak. It effortlessly raised the weight, allowing the man to crawl free. Wincing in pain, he got to his knees.

“Prime will be here any moment. He will not look kindly upon you.”

The words did not sink in. Entrapta was transfixed by Hordak’s armour – more accurately the part of it that wasn’t there. She spoke gently, “Your crystal, it… what happened to you?”

“It is of no consequence to you,” he began to laugh quietly, “It is of no consequence to anything. When Horde Prime sees me, he will see only failure. A mistake. And he will wipe me out.”

The Princess got to her knees, mirroring his position, and looked into his eyes, “You’re not a failure. You’re my lab partner, we built a portal machine together. We created some of the most advanced tech on the planet, tech that was beyond my wildest dreams. And we were happy together. Or… do you think that was a mistake?”

“I do not regret any of the things we did together,” Hordak’s solemn tone masked the feelings inside. Emotions that he should not have been able to feel – happiness, warmth…. _Love. _A bittersweet notion that tore him in half – these feelings were desirable and he wanted to hold onto them, but at the same time they served as a reminder that he was faulty. An aberration.

A strand of hair gently stroked his cheek, “Then we should continue to do them?”

“We cannot,” his gaze hit the floor, “Prime will not understand. Entrapta, you need to run. _Please._”

“No!” Entrapta protested, lifting herself up off the floor, “I won’t leave you!”

“This is not a choi-“

A tendril of hair closed his mouth, its owner looking intensely at him, “I thought my friends ran away from me when I came to the Fright Zone. I thought they had left me here because I didn’t fit in with them. But they came back to find me on Beast Island and said that they still wanted me. Listen!”

She pulled her recorder out from a pocket, pressing a couple of buttons and letting Bow’s voice play out, _“We never gave up on you, even when you were with the Horde. Because that’s what friends do.”_

“See! Friends never give up on friends. And I know I don’t know a lot about friendship, but we’re friends, aren’t we? More, maybe?”

Hordak began to speak, but he was cut short as the two of them became bathed in a green glow. They were lifted up at great speed, disorienting them both until the light became so bright they had to close their eyes. Seconds later, they found themselves falling onto a floor in an unfamiliar room.

“Is that you, Little Brother?” a voice rang out. Looking over to its source, Hordak and Entrapta saw a chair rotate round to look at them, “I thought you had perished.”

The Princess jumped to her feet and scuttled across towards Prime, “You look like Hordak, but not… that means you must be…”

“What is the meaning of this?!” Prime roared, making Entrapta jump a little, “Have you no respect?”

“Hold on, I need to…” she pulled out her voice recorder, talking into it and she sprang around investigating Prime’s body, “Fright Zone log, day… I don’t know. I don’t think I’m in the Fright Zone any more, so… Wherever-This-Is log day 1. Horde Prime is aesthetically similar to Hordak, the hair is different, somewhat more-“

Prime had had enough of this flagrant disregard for his superiority. He pulled his arm back and thrust it powerfully at her, sending Entrapta flying several feet. She hit the ground, the sound of her recorder echoing as it clattered across the floor.

“How dare you!” Hordak ran towards his big brother, yelling, “Leave her alone!”

“I don’t understand,” Prime squinted at him, “Why do you care about this inferior specimen? It is merely a primitive creature from this planet you have been on. And a disrespectful one at that.”

“Entrapta is not a ‘primitive creature’. She helped me create the portal machine that sent the signal to you. She has been instrumental in fabricating the advanced weapons that have helped me grow the empire in your name. She is my lab partner. But more than that,” he looked across and Entrapta, who was now sat up, leaning forward as she tried to catch her breath, “She is my friend.”

There was silence in the room. It was soon followed by the sound of raucous laughter from Prime and the clones at his side, “Friend? I had almost forgotten that you were the faulty one. We have no need for ‘friends’, that is merely a regrettable mistake I made when creating you. Please take him for reprogramming.”

Two clones tore away from the throne and began to make their way towards Hordak. As they reached out to grab him, a purple blur passed through their eyeline quickly followed by Entrapta herself, launching herself towards them. One foot made contact with each of the clones’ chests, knocking them backwards.

“I won’t let you!” she shouted.

“Entrapta…” Hordak was grateful for her assistance, but that was dwarfed by the concern he felt for her, “You shouldn’t have done that.”

“Of course I should!” she gazed upwards, the difference in their height very obvious when they were both stood next to each other. A thick strand of hair knocked one of the clones back down, “I couldn’t let him do that to you. Then we wouldn’t be friends anymore.”

An unknown feeling hit Hordak. It was as though his body had an excess of energy, but an energy that needed to escape through contact with something. There was an odd sensation in his gut, as though it were empty and full at the same time. And an urge to do something he had never needed to do before.

“I am…” he began but could not find adequate words to explain. Instead, he leaned forward and gave in to the impulse, encircling Entrapta’s body with his arms and applying a small amount of pressure. She responded by raising herself up on her hair so that he could stand up straight, then put her arms around him. Hordak had never experienced such a feeling, and he did not understand how being trapped by someone’s arms could provide such pleasure, such happiness, such safety.

“What is going on!” Prime yelled, demanding to know how he could even have made such an error with the cloning process that the product would have zero respect for him.

Entrapta craned her head around to look at him, “It’s called a hug. My friends did it when they were happy, and I have studied the optimal way in which to conduct one.”

“Stop this at once, brother!”

This was the decisive moment for Hordak. Either he could obey his brother and take his place at his side, likely condemning Entrapta to death; or he could snub Prime, staying with Entrapta but potentially making the entire planet a target for the leader’s wrath. It was a decision that took only a split-second to make. He did not move.

Prime’s anger had risen in the face of such betrayal, “I see you have made your choice. Now you must suffer the consequences.”

The embracing couple were once again surrounded by blinding light and a force that sent them moving at incredible speed. After a moment, they were back surrounded by the crumbling Fright Zone, their arms still wrapped around each other.

“Oh, we’re back here!” Entrapta gasped cheerily, “We should rebuild your lab so we can do research together again.”

Hordak wore a regretful smile, his hands slipping down and coming to rest on the girl’s hips, “It is pointless. Prime is going to destroy the planet and there is nothing we can do.”

The Princess met his gaze with the optimistic expression that had first sparked his passion, “A true scientist never gives up. And a true friend doesn’t either. We built a portal machine together! There’s nothing we can’t do as long as we have each other.”

She brought her head forward, giving Hordak a small kiss on the cheek, “You’re all I need.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OK, not an entirely happy ending, but certainly much better than we saw!
> 
> Which other characters need happiness?

**Author's Note:**

> We're just going to forget the whole Heart of Etheria thing activating and Horde Prime arriving because.... we just do, ok? :D
> 
> BTW, let me know if you want a second chapter where Entrapta comes and rescues Hordak


End file.
